Stay
by Undertaker's Wife
Summary: Left alone in war torn England Rose McCallister returns to the one place she has ever felt consistently loved. Can a certain soldier with southern charm break through the ice that now surrounds her heart?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Band of Brothers. I only own Rose and any other character you don't recognize. I only mean this to be based off the t.v. series and not the real men.**

**Chapter One: Home**

It was late and the smell of the afternoon rain was still in the air. A lone figure was walking by the town pub that was in full swing, a tan suitcase was in her right gloved hand. The sound of laughter and jazz music reached her ears but she would not be deterred from her destination. The lights inside the two story brick house all were off except one. The single light blazed from the upstairs window, and the silhouette of a young man hunched over a desk was the only thing that the woman on the street could see. It had been close to four years since the stranger had stood on this spot, but at that point in time she was leaving and the reality of why she was back was more then she wanted to think about.

Her attention was drawn to the front door as it was burst open, the light of the newly illuminated hallway poured onto the street it was slightly blocked by the figure of an old woman who was standing in the doorframe, several seconds past before the old woman beckoned the younger one into the house and into the sitting room. Not much had changed in the past four years, the walls were still painted the same rose pink and the hard wood floors hadn't lost their shine. The only real difference was in the two women, the years had changed them not so much that they wouldn't be recognized but the war had changed them enough that neither one would ever be the same.

The old woman was the first to break the silence, "I didn't expect for you to come." It wasn't unkind just a statement of fact. The young woman nodded her head and in a soft voice close to a whisper said "I didn't know where else to go." It was a sad admission but a truthful one all the same. The older woman nodded her head and signaled to the stairs with one hand and encircled the young woman's back. "Go on upstairs; you remember where your old room was." The young woman was half way up the stairs when she turned, "Grandmother, when I was walking up to your house I saw a young man." Her grandmother nodded, "I have two young men saying with me, they are American soldiers and very sweet young men. I'll introduce you in the morning; Get some sleep Rose you look like you're about to fall over." Rose nodded her head as she finished walking up the stairs.

The second floor hallway was filled with photographs of relatives long since passed, the photograph that was hung outside the third door on the left, was of a happy couple on their wedding day. Both had identical grins of happiness and looking forward to the future of being together forever. "_Idiot girl._" Rose thought bitterly as she walked into her old room. The queen sized bed was pushed against the wall opposite of the door and a vanity sat in the corner. The bed was turned down as if she was expected and shook her head as she figured she probably was. Her grandmother was her only family left in England, being orphaned when she was a child and now Ethan. The thought broke off in her mind as she took a shuddering breath and shook her head as if she could get rid of her demons.

She removed her brown tweed coat that hugged her waist tightly, and hung it over the chair that sat in front of her vanity; as she sat down to remove the pins from her long curly black hair. A half an hour later she was changed into her night dress and climbing into bed. The sheets felt clammy against her skin and no matter how many times she tossed and turned no position was comfortable. Finally around one she was able to drift off into a restless sleep with her dreams full of images of planes and fire.

**This is my first BOB fanfic so please leave your comments to let me know how I'm doing!! Thanks!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own Band of Brothers!**

**Chapter Two: Reunions**

Rose woke up to the front door slamming shut in the morning, not that it was the first time that she had woken up during the night. She had been tossing and turning all night do to the dreams that she was having they kept waking her up in a cold sweat, not that it was anything new for her, during the past six months she had been having these dreams over and over ever since she had gotten the news. Rose shook her head as if to rid it from the bad memories, she turned her head towards the window looking out it, and the sun was just starting to rise above the horizon. She guessed it was about 6:30 in the morning, but none the less she swung her long legs over the side of the bed her feet hitting the cold hardwood floor sent a shiver threw her body. She dressed quickly pinning her long hair on top of her head and made her way down the creaky wooden steps.

She wasn't surprised to see her grandmother already sitting at the kitchen table with a steaming cup of tea; she smiled over the top of her book her eyes crinkling at the edges.

"Good morning dear. Did George and Denver wake you up? I told them to be quiet."

"No I was getting up already." She dismissed her grandmother and went about making her own cup of tea but stopped one hand in the ice box gripping the milk and the other gripping the door her knuckles turning white at her grandmother's next words.

"Bad dreams? I know it must be hard ever since Paul, but my dear he wouldn't want you to live like this. Showing up at my house in the middle of the night…" She trailed off at the scathing look that her only granddaughter sent her as she slammed the small door closed.

"I'm sorry I didn't realize that coming to visit you was such a problem…" She was cut off by her grandmother shaking her head.

"No, no my dear it isn't that it's a bother or a burden you could never be, I'm just worried for you.

"Well you shouldn't be" Rose snapped. "I've been taking care of myself for a very long time if you haven't forgotten."

Her grandmother rose from the table slowly putting a hand on her granddaughter's shaking arm, with a sad smile she replied "No darling I haven't forgotten, perhaps it wasn't best for me to bring it up go on and visit Alexis I know that she would love to see you." With that her grandmother walked out of the kitchen leaving her granddaughter to her thoughts.

An hour later Rose had bathed and dressed in her favorite yellow dress, that cinched under her bust line and flared out at her hips, her long dark hair was pinned on the top of her head. She called a goodbye to her grandmother and started out on the street, the closer that she got to the main street in Aldbourne the more she started loosing her nerve do to all the stares that she was receiving. She had never been liked in Aldbourne prior to her leaving, her best friend Alexis blamed it on "jealous slag's" as she called them.

The memories of growing up in Aldbourne attacked her sense as she made her way down the narrow street, she passed by the McGuire's grocery store that Paul used to take her to everyday after school to get her a soda, and the Mr. Bronson's bookshop where she first met Paul at the age of fourteen when she moved to Aldbourne, and finally the Star light theater where Paul had taken her on their first date. Her thoughts and memories were suddenly cut off when she noticed a group of four women staring at her from across the street, she didn't recognize any of the them until one of them made that fact known when she saw Rose again on the street and with a sickening sweet voice that Rose recognized as belonging to Sarah Clark called over "Rose? Rosie is that really you? I haven't seen you for close to two years! Tell me how is Paul?" Rose froze the world froze and Sarah slapped her left hand to her mouth fanning distress as she said "My dear I completely forgot. You're a war widow! If you need anything dear anything at all you can come call on me and Jack." No matter how she acted Rose new what this girl was and she was anything but distressed.

Sarah Clark had been anything but kind to Rose for the short time that she lived in Aldbourne; Alexis said it was because Rose didn't do anything to attract the attention that she got from the boys in town. Rose was simply herself and Sarah hated hit, she especially hated it when Rose started seeing Paul, the one boy that Sarah would have cut off her right arm to have. Paul was smart, attractive, and from a well off family everything that made him the most eligible boy Sarah and Rose's age and Rose got him not from batting her eyelashes at him or wearing dresses that left little to the imagination, but by simply being herself and Sara had never forgiven Rose for that fact.

With a small nod and attempting to stop the bile that was rising in her throat Rose asked looking at her "Jack?" With a small giggle and nod of her head the sweetness returning to her voice only giddier this time Sarah replied "Jack Masters. We've been married for nearly a year! You would have known that if you hadn't of run away the day you turned 17!" With a small giggle she smiled a small mocking at Rose and continued on her way with her giggling group of friends behind her.

A voice from behind Rose caused the first real smile that she had smiled in six months to come to her lips, "I swear the only reason why he married that slag was because you didn't give him the time of day. The again he does look like a rat his eyes all beady and such." Rose spun around to find her best friend Alexis standing behind her. Her blonde hair was pulled into a braid the hung down her back and her bright green eyes dancing with mirth. She was startled when her long lost friend suddenly threw her arms around her. "I missed you Rosie!" was whispered in her ear and Rose couldn't help the tears that she had been trying to hold back all day from spilling onto her cheeks. Alexis noticed quickly enough and pulled away her hands wiping at her friends rosy cheeks "come on love let's go inside for a cup of tea. It will make you feel right as rain." With that she grabbed Rose's arm and whisked her off the street and into the warm little bakery.


End file.
